


Learning how to swim

by Clarakluk



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-01
Updated: 2014-06-01
Packaged: 2018-02-03 01:10:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1725683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Clarakluk/pseuds/Clarakluk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nico trying to leave CHB, but Percy comes along and wants to teach Nico how to swim.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Learning how to swim

Nico was sitting all alone on the beach, just staring at the soft waves, and the sun glittering in the water. His head was full of thoughts. It had been two weeks since they got home from Athens, and Percy was spending all his time– literally –with Annabeth. Annabeth had even started sleeping in the Poseidon cabin. Nico couldn't stand it anymore.

He looked down on the backpack at his feet. This morning he'd stuffed all his few belongings down in it, ready to leave. He'd thought about taking to Camp Jupiter, but he still wasn't sure; he just needed to get away from _him_.

Nico opened his bag and pulled out a little statuette. It was from a game called Mythomagic he'd been obsessed with as little; the statuette was of Hades, his father. Bianca had found it to him a couple of years ago, the night she'd died. Percy had given him it, when he'd told him about Bianca. Nico didn't blame Percy anymore for Bianca's death, but he still couldn't be around him; not just because of Nico's feelings, but also all the bad memories he'd had involving Percy.

"Hi Nico," a voice said behind him, startling him so much he dropped the statuette of his father. He turned around to see who it was. Percy was smiling down at him. "What are you doing?" he asked.

Nico shrugged. "Thinking."

"You like to think here?" Percy asked and Nico nodded.

"Me too," Percy smiled. "Can I sit?"

When Nico didn't answer, Percy took it as a yes and sat down. He gazed happily out over the sea for a moment, and then he said, "It reminds me of many good times. Does it remind you of anything?"

"No..." Nico answered hesitantly, but pictures swirled around in his mind; of Percy, the first time Nico had seen him, fighting the manticore; of Percy, telling him of Bianca; of Percy, when he defeated Hades army after his bath in Styx; of Percy's green eyes; of Percy's smile; of Percy, Percy, Percy.

"Oh, come on! It must remind you of something?" Percy said.

"Uh... Maybe... of blue chocolate cake?" Nico answered, picking the least emotionally of his memories of Percy. Percy grinned.

"That plan nearly cost my life, but it seemed to work out," he said, his green eyes the same color of the sea he was gazing at.

"You didn't die," Nico said, trying to fake annoyance. That didn’t went well. "My plan worked perfectly." Then he added, "sort of."

Percy laughed, which made Nico crack a little smile. Percy had such a nice laugh... He shook his head and gazed out over the water again, his smile melting.

"Does it remind you of anything else? Any good summer vacations at the ocean?" Percy asked.

Nico shook his head. "Nope, my mother never took us to the sea - or to any other places with water, except for the bathroom..." he told Percy. Percy glanced at him.

"That means you can't swim?" he asked. Nico nodded, keeping his gaze on the horizon. 

"Neither could Bianca."

Suddenly Percy rose to his feet and began to pull off in his t-shirt. Nico's eyes widened and he could feel his cheeks warm up.

"Uh... Percy...? Wha- what are you doing?" he asked, quite a bit frightened. Percy turned around as he tucked his t-shirt all the way off and threw it on the ground.

"What do you think? Take off your t-shirt," Percy said to him grinning. Some ideas flew through Nico's head before he could stop them.

" _What?!_ "

"I'm going to teach you how to swim of course!" Percy said and began taking off his sneakers and socks too, so he only was wearing his shorts. Nico tried to look away from Percy's flat, trained stomach, the clearly marked abs...

He tore his eyes away. "I don't think that's a good idea..." he said nervously.

"Why not? Don't worry, I'll help you. Come on, take off your t-shirt and shoes!" Percy said again and walked down to the water. "Hurry up, or I'll come back and carry you down in the water!" he called over his shoulder.

Nico actually considered it until Percy added, "Or are you considering that option?"

"No, I'm coming," he said and took off his shoes and socks. He took the rim of his t-shirt. Should he take it off, or just keep it on?

He glanced down at Percy. He was standing with water up to his angles with his hands on his hips, his back turned to Nico.

"Percy? Do you really think this is a good idea?" Nico asked uncertainly.

"What? Don't worry." Percy grinned back at him, his green eyes shining brightly.

"Fine," Nico said finally and pulled his t-shirt off. He was extremely aware of the pale skin on his bare stomach. Luckily, he'd decided to take black shorts on instead of his black jeans... Maybe he did wear too much black.

He slowly walked down to Percy in the water, the wet sand unfamiliar under his bare feet. Nico had never been this close to the sea before, only two steps from touching the domain of Poseidon.

"Percy, are you completely sure? I mean, I am a son of Hades and all..." Nico said. Percy grinned and took his wrist. Nico couldn't help but notice the difference between Percy's suntanned skin and his own sickly pale skin; the warmth of Percy's hand against his wrist...

Percy pulled in him so he stepped out in the water. The feeling of the moving saltwater against his feet was so strange and yet so nice... Like a soft touch with cool hands, tickling his toes, his ankles. He took a step more, and then one more until the water reached him to the middle of the shin. Percy smiled encouraging and pulled him further out in the water. Nico could see the sand rising every time he took a step further.

"See?" Percy said. "It's fine!" The water was now reaching Nico to the edge of his shorts. A wave that was a little higher than the others, came crashing into him and soaked his shorts completely. Percy let go of Nico's wrist and splashed a handful of water at Nico. The water was ice cold against his stomach, and he let out a gasp.

"Hey!" he exclaimed and splashed water at Percy, who just laughed and deflected it.

"Unfair!" Nico said and slashed more water on him. Percy laughed again, and willed a wave to hit Nico. He stumbled at the impact and fell. Suddenly Percy caught him and helped him upright again, but he was still laughing. Nico couldn't stop himself, he grinned too.

"Come on, we need to walk into the deeper water," Percy said, still smiling and lead Nico longer out into the water. He stopped when the water reached Nico to the middle of the chest.

"It's deep enough here," Percy said and turned to Nico. "First you need to learn how to keep yourself afloat. Here, let me show you." Percy lifted his legs from the sandy bottom and straightened in the water, so he was lying with his side to Nico, his stomach and knees just above the water, his arms stretched out on either side of him. Then he let his feet dump down on the sand again and turned to Nico.

"Your turn, I'll hold you like this," Percy said and held his hands under Nico's arms, "and you just lean back and try to lift your feet from the bottom," he continued. Nico hesitated, but eventually let go. He tried to do like Percy had showed him, but it was actually harder than you would think.

"J-just don't let me go, okay?" he said desperately, still struggling to stay afloat.

Percy grinned. "Nico, we're not so deep, I'm only half down in the water," he answered.

"Swear by the River Styx, that you won't let me drown!" Nico kept insisting.

"Nico, you are with me! I'll make sure you don't drown - if you did, you must be the most unlucky person in the world, drowning in the company of a son of Poseidon," Percy laughed, but it didn't reassure Nico.

“Swear it!”

“Okay, okay. I swear on the River Styx, that I won’t let you drown,” Percy said, though he was still laughing, but it made Nico feel a little better. Percy shifted his hands so he had a hand on the middle of Nico’s back, and the other under his neck. Nico felt his body stiffen.

“You need to relax,” Percy told him. Nico took a deep breath and tried to relax, but if was extremely difficult with Percy’s hands on his back.

“Just imagine that you are air, it actually helps – I’ve heard... That, and emptying your head for every thought,” Percy suggested. Nico closed his eyes. He focused on the feeling of Percy’s hands on his back, and tried to release all other things. It was difficult, but he just kept focusing on the feeling of Percy’s hands on his back. _Focus,_ he thought. _I’m air. Air doesn’t have feelings. Air is light. Air doesn’t think…_ Finally, he could feel his body getting lighter.

“Yeah, you almost have it,” Percy said. Nico could feel him moving his hands, preparing to let go. At that, panic surged through his body, and Nico’s focus broke. All his emotions came surging back into him, making him drop. Percy hurried to hold him afloat again.

“Are you alright?” he asked. Nico nodded and let his legs sink down to the sandy bottom again.

“Can’t we try something else?” he asked, his voice shaking a little bit, as he stood up, and Percy removed his hands.

“Well, we can try simple swimming?” he suggested. “Try to float again, just on your stomach now. I’ll hold you up,” he said and held out his arms for Nico to lie on. Nico bit his lower lip, but nodded hesitantly. Percy bent down and placed one arm under Nico’s chest, and the other just under his bellybutton, as Nico leaned forward.

“Yeah, that’s right,” Percy said. “Try to move your arms forward in a circle, and hold your hands to you shove the water backward.” Nico tried to do as told, but it was pretty hard, because Percy wasn’t good at explaining.

“What about I show you instead,” Percy suggested after a few more attempts. Nico nodded and let his feet sink down on the sandy bottom yet again. Percy removed his hands and flattened himself on his stomach, his head just above the water.

“See? And then you just move your arms forward like this…” he said, and moved his arms in a circle, shoving the water behind him and shooting forward, “…and on the same time, kick out with your legs, moving them in a circle like this.” He showed it again and again. When he’d swum a whole circle around Nico, he stood up again and held out his arms. “Your turn.”

Nico approached him slowly, and leaned forward, feeling Percy’s hands and forearms against his chest and stomach again.

“Like this?” he asked and moved his arms and legs, trying his best to mimic Percy’s movements.

“Almost, you need to use your hands as shovels, pushing the water out and back. Like, if you were trying to dig a hole in the ground with your bare hands,” Percy said. “Keep your fingers together, and your hands a little rounded. And your feet need to be flat, so you have the biggest surface to push the water back, understand?”

Nico nodded a little.

After a few moments, Percy was satisfied with him. “I’ll try to release you now, okay?”

Nico nodded again. Percy slowly let go and Nico made the movements he’d just trained, but as soon as Percy let him go, his head came under water. The sea pulled him quickly longer out and away from the shore, unto the deeper waters. Nico tried to push up from the bottom with his hands, up to the surface and the air, since he was dragged along at his feet, but the ocean restrained him, and kept him in place, still dragging him longer and longer out. Nico couldn’t see anything but the sand that got whirled up from the bottom, and his lungs felt like they were going to explode soon, and the pressure was about to crush him. Suddenly he slowed down. He became aware of something that was tangled around his angle. He looked back and tried to kick free, black spots dancing over his eyes because of the lack of oxygen. He managed to catch a glimpse of the seaweed around his right ankle before the dark spots completely filled his eyes.

Suddenly a bronze flash came, and a hand gripped Nico’s upper arm. He felt the small bubbles around him tightening and melting together around his head. Then he blacked out.

 

 

Nico opened his eyes. The sky was blue above him, only a few small fuzzy clouds were visible.

“Nico!” a voice said beside him, and a shadowy face leaned over him. “Oh, thank gods you’re alive! Wait a minute, this isn’t going to be fun, but it’ll help.” Nico couldn’t think clearly enough to identify the silhouette above him. He felt a hand against his chest. Suddenly water welled up from his lungs and the hand moved quickly from Nico’s chest to his back, helping him sit up and throw up the water.

After a moment, his lungs were empty, and he could breath freely again.

“How are you?” the person beside him asked anxiously. He turned to look up at the worried face of Percy.

“I’m sorry, Nico. I didn’t see the monster, before it grabbed hold of you… I’m sorry,” Percy said and looked down on his hands. Nico stared at him wide-eyed.

“You saved me life…”

“Yes of course! I would have done it even if you hadn’t made me swear it.”

“You would?” Nico asked quietly.

“Of course I would Nico! I’m sorry I didn’t reach you sooner, or saw the monster. I shouldn’t have dragged you out in the water in the first place, anyway… I was stupid.”

Nico didn’t know what to say. He was still pretty dizzy, and his head was slow from the long time with lack of air.

Finally, he managed to croak a, “Thanks,” out. Percy smiled, concern still filling his eyes, but he moved a little away, leaning back on his arms. Nico looked around. They were sitting on the beach, only a few meters away from his backpack. Percy noticed him looking at it.

“Why did you even have a bag with, anyway?” he asked.

“Uh… I was…”

“You were living again?” Percy asked. Nico looked surprised up at him, because he was sure he had heard something like disappointment in his voice. Nico just shrugged.

“Oh, come on Nico. Why do you keep running? Please, stay.” Percy sat up again and reached for him, but Nico moved away.

“Don’t. I just don’t belong here, okay? I’m a son of Hades, I’ll never belong,” he said and turned, so he gazed out over the sea. Percy sighed beside him.

“Nico, of course you belong here? Where would you go else? And don’t say the Underworld,  because I’m not letting you stay down there all alone.”

“I wouldn’t be alone, there’s a lot of friendly ghosts down there.”

“You can’t just hang around with dead people all the time! You need living contact!”

“You sound like Persephone. She doesn’t want me down there either. Else I can take to camp Jupiter.”

“Then why not stay here? Most of your friends are here in camp Half-Blood,” Percy argued.

“I don’t have friends,” Nico said and rose to his feet. “Thanks for saving my life yet again, good-bye.” Nico walked over and took on his shirt again, then swung his backpack over his shoulder. He didn’t bother to take his shoes on yet. He heard Percy call his name, but he walked straight into a shadow and disappeared.

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know if I should continue this? I was thinking about making Percy's POV on the last and then continue to him looking for Nico and trying to figure out why Nico acted like he did... Should I?
> 
> Anyways, thanks for reading! Hope you liked it! Please leave kudos and comments! :D


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